Pakistan's ambassador to Sri Lanka Bashir Wali Mohamed narrowly escaped a powerful Claymore mine attack in the capital Monday. A car was blown up near the Liberty Plaze roundabout, close to the first barrier leading to the president's Temple Trees residence, police said. Hospital sources said seven people including three civilians and four army personnel were killed due to this explosion.

Monday, August 14, 2006
@ DNA - India

COLOMBO: Seven people were killed and eight wounded in a bomb attack near President Mahinda Rajapakse's official residence, a hospital spokesman said.

The blast was near the Indian cricketers' hotel but all the players are said to be safe.

The blast shook the Flower Road area in the Sri Lankan capital and a Reuters witness could see smoke rising.

The blast shook the windows of the Reuters office in the capital, and comes just hours after a suspected Tamil Tiger front threatened to attack civilians if the military continued attacks on Tamil Tiger rebel territory.

Initial reports said a Lankan military convoy was hit by the bomb.

"We have a report of an explosion and we have sent police cars to the area," a police spokesman said.

However, another police official said the explosion ripped through a government limousine, near the President's official residence.

A military convoy escorting a Pakistan Embassy vehicle was hit by the bomb but only a Land Rover at the rear was caught in the blast. The windows of the Land Rover were blown out, and the vehicle was badly damaged. A three-wheeler taxi was on fire.

The other vehicles in the convoy were not damaged. Ambulances rushed to the scene.

The car was blown up near the Liberty Plaze roundabout, close to the first barrier leading to the president's Temple Trees residence, police said.

"We have heard that one VIP car and a backup security vehicle was hit by the blast," a police official said, adding that they were trying to check the number of casualties.

A driver from the convoy said the embassy vehicle was slightly damaged, but no one was hurt.

Ambassador Bashir Wali Mohamed was driving through the area when the blast occurred, police said, adding that a Sri Lankan military vehicle escorting him was hit by the explosion.

"The ambassador is safe. He is unhurt," Pakistan high commission (embassy) spokeswoman Suriya Jamal told AFP.

However four commandos guarding the diplomat were killed instantly, police said, adding that the other three victims were bystanders.

Eight others were wounded and taken to hospital.

Defence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the ambassador appeared to have been the target of the attack because there was no other VIP in the area at the time.

Pakistan also said he was the target.

It was the first time in 21 years that a civilian foreigner had been targeted in an attack in Sri Lanka's three-decades-old separatist campaign, after the kidnapping of an American couple in 1985 by Tamil militants.

Pakistan, which is the main small arms supplier to Sri Lanka, "strongly" condemned the blast.

"The attack was on our high commissioner who is safe but his car is damaged.

Three members of his security team were injured," foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said in Islamabad.

The car was blown up near the Liberty Plaze roundabout, close to the first barrier leading to President Mahinda Rajapakse's Temple Trees residence, police said.

The diplomat's Colombo home is tightly guarded by security forces amid reports that he could be the target of an attack there, officials said.

The attack came four days after a powerful car bomb attack on a government Tamil politician.

The politician escaped but his bodyguard and two bystanders were killed.

Peter

Post subject: Three civilians , four army personnel killed

Posted: Mon Aug 14, 2006 2:30 pm

Three civilians , four army personnel killed

14 Aug 2006 / MODA bomb explosion took place at Kollupitiya at 1.15 p.m today Monday the 14th of August.

The explosion occurred near the Liberty Plaza shopping complex at Kollupitiya.

It is believed that the bomb was fixed in a three wheeler.

The explosion caused damages to the vehicles of the new Pakistan ambassador's security escort.

Hospital sources said that seven people including three civilians were killed due to this explosion.

It is further reported that four army personnel who were attached for the ambassador's security were also killed due to this explosion.

Another eight who received injuries were rushed to the National hospital for immediate medical attention.

Peter

Post subject: LTTE retaliates to Pak help to Colombo

Posted: Mon Aug 14, 2006 11:33 pm

LTTE retaliates to Pak help to Colombo

@ DNA - India / Amir Mir

ISLAMABAD: The diplomatic circles in Islamabad strongly believe that the mine attack on the Pakistani ambassador to Sri Lanka on the Independence Day of the country on August 14 in Colombo was masterminded by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which is perturbed over Islamabad’s recent decision to enter into a defence supplies’ agreement with Colombo.

The Sri Lankan security officials say the ambassador appeared to have been the target of the attack because there was no other VIP in the area at the time. The diplomatic circles in Pakistan say the attack was a clear warning to Pakistan to refrain from arming the Sri Lankan military against the LTTE.

The diplomatic circles informed on the condition of anonymity that during his April 2006 visit to Islamabad and his meeting with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse had expressed his desire to buy a significant amount of air defence equipment from Pakistan, primarily to counter the military might of the LTTE guerrilla fighters back home.

The sources added in a subsequent letter to Pakistani High Commissioner to Colombo in May 2006, Sri Lankan chief of defence staff DWK Sandagiri requested Islamabad to send a technical team to Colombo for a survey of T-55 tanks and C-130 Hercules transport aircraft, as the country was in an urgent need of spare parts for its tanks and aircraft.

The Pakistani support was much appreciated given the fact that the Indian government had expressed its inability to enter into a defence cooperation agreement with Colombo in March.

The Sri Lankan government had sought help from the two south Asian nuclear powers following intelligence reports that the Tamil rebels were approaching sympathisers with requests for one-off donations, saying this was the last time donors would be approached as the rebels were preparing for their final strike.

As things stand, both sides in Sri Lanka’s civil war are preparing for what is likely to be a bloody and prolonged resumption of the conflict. In operations now under way, the Sri Lankan army is fighting its way across well-fortified and heavily mined terrain.

However, the fact remains that the Sri Lankan military remains incapable of totally defeating the LTTE, which is a well-organised, well-trained and remarkably resilient fighting force with a high morale and has shown an ability to accept heavy casualties and still continue with the operations.

Approached for comments, the Pakistani foreign office spokesperson said that Islamabad condemns the attack on its ambassador and was eagerly waiting to know who was behind it.

Peter

Post subject: Police was informed about the three-wheeler 3 hours before

Posted: Tue Aug 15, 2006 3:03 am

Police was informed about the suspicious three-wheeler 3 hours before the explosionTwo shipments of Pakistan military equipments arrived in Colombo last week

It is learnt that Police emergency number 119 was called twice just before the bomb blast. Once at 12.05 pm and again at 12.30 pm. The caller had reported a suspicious three-wheeler moving in the area for about three hours before the explosion.

Source : DM / The Island / CDN- 15 Aug 2006

Most of those injured were inside the parked vehicles along the road. Several buildings down the road including the Ceylon Pentecostal Mission property were damaged but a Montessori school nearby escaped unscathed, police said.

There was chaos in the area with a green coloured car parked beside the road turning into an inferno and people running helter-skelter fearing it would explode. However the twisted charred remains of the three-wheeler and the car were left in one piece thanks to the fire brigade which put the fire out quickly.

It is learnt that Police emergency number 119 was called twice just before the bomb blast. Once at 12.05 pm and again at 12.30 pm. The caller had reported a suspicious three-wheeler moving in the area for about three hours before the explosion.

But the unit had allegedly failed to notify the Kollupitiya Police of the sinister presence in an area that forbade parked three-wheelers due to security reasons.

However, why the LTTEhad targeted the High Commissioner’s motocade was not known. The government ordered a high level probe into the incident in the immediate aftermath of the incident and condemned ‘the attempted assassination of the High Commissioner.’

Meanwhile Pakistan High Commission officials in explaining a possible motive for the assassination attempt said revealed two shipments of military equipment from Pakistan had arrived in Colombo last week. They said the attempt to kill the High Commissioner on Pakistan’s Independence Day indicated the party representing the killers apparently wanted to tell Pakistan to stop giving military assistance to Sri Lanka.

The Pakistan High Commissioner was the only foreign envoy provided with Security by the Government due to security threats, Defence officials said. Director CID Asoka Wijetillaka said the CID had taken over the investigations

Meanwhile, a total of 16 were rushed to the National Hospital accident service after the explosion. Of them 10 are now in 72 and 73 wards and receiving in house treatment.

According to eye witnesses, the escort vehicle caught in the blast had rammed into a parapet wall killing three elite commandoes and one signalman. One commando escaped with injuries and was admitted to the Colombo National Hospital. According to military sources the victims were Commandos Corporal J. S. Kumara, Private Aruna Chinthaka, Lance Corporal Premajayantha and Signalman Sisira Jayananda. Commando Private Sisira Bandara was injured.

Accident Service Director Dr. Anil Jasinghe said an employee of the Ceylon Gem Corporation, Sarath Dayananda who was rushed with critical injuries to his bowels under went surgery and another army soldier Nirosh Bandara was in the Neurosurgical ICU.

"Among the critically injured are a nine year old boy from Panchikawatte. He was brought with severe head injuries and is now under close medical observation," Dr. Jasinghe said.

The hospital authorities yesterday released the names of the civilians warded at the hospital. They are Sarath Dayananda of the State Gem Corporation, P. Madduma (ward 72), K. A. Arunasiri (ward 72), Dishon, 9, (ward 73), H. G. Manjula, 34 , ward 73, and Nimal Karunaratne of Thalahena. The civilians killed in the incident are Ranjani Hewamanne of Kotte, Padman Maga Abeydheera an engineer from Battaramulla and a 25 year old whose identity is yet unknown.

The wife of the engineer, an employee of the State Pharmaceutical Corporation rushed to the hospital after hearing that her husband was among the victims of the bomb, over the radio.

Adding a twist to yesterday’s blast, a group identifying itself as the high security zone resident’s liberation force warned that if the killing of civilians continued in the Northeast the group would target civilians in the South.

The group believed to be an LTTE front said in a faxed statement that its cadres in the south had been given orders to attack civilian targets if the armed forces continued to massacre civilians in the Northeast